soyuz-27 embarks on international mission to the ISS
The Soyuz-27 spacecraft with an international crew on board launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Two Russian cosmonauts and an American astronaut are on their way to the International Space Station (ISS). A large crowd of spectators watched the rocket launch.
The Soyuz-27 spacecraft, with two Russian cosmonauts and one American astronaut, launched on Tuesday, 8 April from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The crew reached the International Space Station (ISS) after more than three hours of flight.
Mission to the ISS
On board the Soyuz are Russians Sergey Ryzhikov and Aleksei Zubritski, along with American Jonathan Kim. The mission participants will spend eight months on the ISS, and their return to Earth is scheduled for 9 December 2025.
For Kim and Zubritski, this is their first spaceflight, while Ryzhikov already has experience from two previous missions to the ISS.
Video from Bydgoszcz. They walked freely in the busy centre
Kim, Ryzhikov, and Zubritski will join three NASA astronauts, three Russians, and one astronaut from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
While at the station, Jonathan Kim will conduct scientific and technological research aimed at helping prepare future crews for space missions. The Russian corporation Roscosmos announced that the Russian mission participants will conduct around 50 scientific experiments.
International cooperation
Interestingly, about 2,500 tourists observed the spaceship's launch from Baikonur, which is a record number.
It’s worth noting that the Baikonur Cosmodrome has been leased by Russia from Kazakhstan since 1991, for £95 million annually, under an agreement effective until 2050.
